tongsa

It's our first time (and probably not again in a loooong time) trip to WDW, Orlando. We will be there in July for 5 days at WDW and 3 between Universal/Seaworld. There are too many websites/ blogs that offer ideas l so am going with the forum I trust...

Can you help me decide where to stay - Pop Century or Art of Animation or Port Orleans Riverside/FQ - my primary concern is convenience of transportation (time and walking effort) to get around the theme parks+ water parks?

tongsa

Oh, no car so relying on Disney transport and taxis if any.

nytraveler

Who and how many is we? Age of kids?

tongsa

Three in all - one adult and two kids aged 12 and 8. Thanks.

spirobulldog

Are you sure you want to do that much Theme Parking? I think doing MGM an Disney all in the same trip is a mistake. With the age of your kids, I'd do just Disney. You will have plenty good time and save some bucks. I would include a day at one of the Disney Waterparks too, while at Disney.

I don't think there is any advantage to any of the resorts you mention. You will be riding a bus for the most part to get to each of the theme parks. Best bet for easy access to part of the parks is at one of the Monorail Resorts.


Staying at The Swan, Dolphin, Boarwalk, or Yacht Club gives somewhat better access, but still not as good as directly on the monorail route.

I still think the best advice for Disney(especially when riding buses) is to start early in the morning. If you leave right after a parade, expect a possibility of waiting for a long time to get back to your room.

Staying at A of A, might be good since the pool area is supposed to be bigger than anywhere else Disney offers. I haven't been there though.

Dukey1

The EPCOT resorts mentioned above are a LOT better for EPCOT since you can walk into it from there. We routinely stay at the Yacht and Beach...but before we go any further, are you willing to PAY to stay at any of the EPCOT resorts much less the three Magic Kingdom resorts? They are considerably more expensive than the Port Orleans, for example.

The bus routes vary. You are going to be spending some time on the bus to get to the MK, much less the Animal Kingdom or even the Studios and EPCOT. How important is saving money to you? The bus rides don't last forever...the worst aspect is if you stay until somewhere like the MK closes and then the busses can be jammed and you may have to wait a while to get "the next one" to your hotel.

You do NOT need or want a car if you are on the property; what you are going to need is some patience.

rizzo0904

Are you going this July? Are there still rooms at all 3 places?

AoA is nice since you can get a suite and have two bathrooms. Plus, you can close the bedroom doors and have some time "away" from the kids. And there are 3 beds in the suites so no one has to sleep together.

Since you are doing Universal and Seaworld, why not stay off site, save a ton of cash on hotels, and use that to rent a car?

tongsa

The kids birthdays - one wants to go to the WWof Harry Potter and the other is into Disney! So, it's theme park all the way....

Dukey, Spiro - no am not willing to pay that much for the rooms....I figured we will be out most of the day anyway. Leaning towards POFQ or AoA as of now.

spirobulldog

Ive been several times. Ive stayed at Grand Floridian, Polynesian, Contemporary, Dolphin, Coronado Springs, Grand Hyatt-off prop, and Travel Lodge-off prop. Have been on Dis cruise once, and Disneyland staying on property there twice.
You get what you pay for. Disney is the one place that you are paying more than just a place to sleep. It involves location, transportation, early access(if staying on a Dis Property), access to meals, parking or no parking fees, swimming facilities, dining, character meals, fireworks from your room, lighted boat parade from your room, etc. There really is a lot that comes into play. In my mind there are two "best ways"

First thought--go all out and stay at one of the top resorts

Second thought--Plan on using your place to stay as just that, a place to stay. If you really aren't going to be there a the hotel that much, then you perhaps are better off to consider a less expensive option. I would go for something in the value category. What I mean by that is-- If you stay at Port Orleans or at All Star Resort, you are still going to wait an hour or longer at the closing of the parks. If you stay at any of the monorail locations, you are likely to be in your room in 10 minutes from Epcot or Magic Kingdom. You can get to some resorts by Magic Kingdom and Epcot via water transportation or walking, but not both. Then there are places like Animal Kingdom, where that lodge is really just good for that one specific spot So, you are still going to ride the bus to any waterpark, Animal Kingdom, MGM and possibly Magic Kingdom and Epcot.

I will say that at every Dis Property that I have ever stayed at I felt like things were done the very best they possibly could be. I have been at slow time and unbelievably busy times when they close the park entrance at 11:00AM due to large crowds.

From the resorts you mentioned in your original post--If you get up early(meaning an hour before the park opens) you will likely encounter 20-40 minutes of transportation time to your park. If you decide to sleep in a bit and not go until 9:30-10:30 plan on 1 hour or more. If you stay at Epcot or Magic Kingdom for final show or parade then expect for it to be more than an hour and possibly 2 hours to get to your bed. The line just to get on a bus can be brutal. It isn't as bad at closing at Animal Kingdom or the waterparks.

There is definately an art to really not getting frustrated at Disney and keeping the day going smoothly. I like go with a well laid out plan at Magic Kingdom, Epcot, MGM, and AK. I always make one meal reservation as that isn't wasted time standing in line there. I have never been frustrated at the waterparks, I don't think they require any plan, IMOP.

Definately get a book and have an idea of what you want to do. I'm not sure how they do the fast passes now, as I think they have a new system in place or are about to implement something new. You will want to take advantage of that.
It's hard to imagine the size, coordination, and the amount of people that are at this place until you get here.
Have a great time and enjoy your trip!! I'm sure you and your kids will love it however you do it.

spirobulldog

PORQ is rated #7 of 26 hotels around Disney on Tripadvisor. Pop Century #17.

Most of the reviews on TA for AA were not good from people who had been to Dis more than once.

My sis n law/family stayed at PORQ and they seemed to be happy with it.

mikesmom

The POFQ at Disney is a "moderate" hotel. Pop Century and AoA are "value" resorts. I have stayed at POFQ and Pop. There is not a huge difference between the hotel types, but I would choose POFQ, unless you are considering a suite at AoA, which would give you the most room. The moderate resorts have queen sized beds, rather than double beds. POFQ is a little smaller than some of the other resorts and very easy to navigate. You also have access to Port Orleans Riverside, as they are connected.

I suggest you go to disboards.com. You will find everything you need to know about Disney World on this site, including info on any possible hotel discounts. Right now, there is nothing that covers July, but new discounts should be coming out soon.

As far as Universal is concerned, if you can stay on-site, you will have front of the line access to most rides and can enter The WWHP one hour before regular guests. The Universal hotels are beautiful. I have stayed at all three of them more than once. Since you won't have a car, you will be able to walk to both theme parks and to the restaurants and shops. If it is in your budget, stay on-site. You won't be sorry.

Have fun!

tongsa

Thanks Spiro - you have totally hit the nail on the head! And it's precisely what you mention about transportation timings whether POFQ/RS or Pop/AOA that makes the choice between a value resort and a moderate difficult for me. Rooms at these are still available but yes, need to decide soon.

On Universal have taken up the Royal Pacific and somehow I feel more "in control" for that than Disney. It's a lot more manageable, IMO.

But thanks, am dreaming and dreading Disney now!

spirobulldog

You'll have a good time at both places. I think Universal is easier to manage, just because of the size. We stayed at RP on our one visit to Universal. Had a good time there too. Just go into it knowing that you might need some patience at times. I think if you try to rush it and try to get everything worked in, then you don't enjoy it.

PCMamma1970

We just stayed at POrt Orleans Riverside and we loved it. We liked it better then the Wilderness Lodge, which is a deluxe. Our kids are 8, 12, 14, 18 and we considered the AoA but decided it was a little too "young" themed for us. A friend just got back from there and said it was "OK" but it wasn't anything special. We had NO problems with transportation at POR.

5alive

I can't advise on the Florida angle, but we did a trip with five days total at Southern California Disney and Lego one day for the younger two while I stayed at Disney with the older one. My kids were going into 7th, 5th and 2nd grade at the time of the trip. We broke up the theme parks with a day at the beach and a day checking out the dinosaur and California mammoth bones in Los Angeles. Having a day of downtime really kind of rejuvenated the kids to go back to the park the next day. It's almost too much excitement otherwise--every day is Christmas morning.

The water park Spiro suggests may also help give that downtime, but otherwise I'd suggest you drop a day of something and go to a beach, hang out a pool, drive to Cape Canaveral.

gmoney

If given the choice of those 3, absolutely POR/FQ. The other two are considered value resorts POR is considered a moderate resort. Actually when we do stay onsite (I live in Orlando) POR is our hotel of choice, it is a very relaxing place to go back to after a hard day of park hopping.